The video links are pretty fun and worth 30 minutes.

1. Secrets of Silicon Valley
what a student needs to know
April 15, 2014
Will Cardwell

2. 10 little lessons learned
Big problem, big opportunity (.5)
Start Small, but build to scale (2)
Think big and act small (1)
Watch for the Black Swan (3.5)
Failure is your friend (.5)
Fail fast and frequently (1.5)
Innovate WITH customers (3.5)
Make business UNUSUAL (4)
Creating a customer experience (2)
Enable cross fertilization (2.5)
Done is better than perfect (3.5)
What about VC?
Be interesting! (3)
Nailing the one minute pitch (2.5)
No 2 pitches are the same (1)

3. ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS A MINDSET
Blogpost by Aalto’s leading Scientist, Professor Risto Nieminen, Aalto University Department of Applied Physics” (2012)
This blogpost, and Risto’s effort in general, has been a major victory for Aalto and this project – it is already driving other leading scientists to join in the
efforts around building our ecosystem and starting new companies.
When invited to join a group visiting Stanford in May, I was happy to join. In addition to learning more about the Aalto Ventures Program, the visit would
allow me to refresh contacts with Stanford physics/materials science colleagues and see the newly opened SUNCAT center at the nearby SLAC
laboratory. Its research mission is to develop new solutions to solar energy capture, for example catalytic conversion of sunlight into fuels such as
hydrogen (artificial photosynthesis, one might say). Moreover, visiting California and the immaculately maintained Stanford campus in springtime is hard
to resist.
I was not disappointed. The visit was most inspiring and useful, and gave several ideas to bring home for further pursuing. We had a chance to interact with
Stanford faculty, staff and students, attend classes, meet and discuss with key players in the Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP), visit
startup companies in Silicon Valley and even attend a Stanford-San Francisco baseball game. The visit was very professionally planned and arranged
by Aalto Ventures Program, and I want to specifically thank Juhana and Mikko for their great work. Stanford is an ideal role model and partner for Aalto,
and we should use every opportunity to widen and deepen our collaboration and interfaces across the whole spectrum of Aalto activities. Stanford is
also an example how entrepreneurial culture can be systematically nurtured without compromising the highest academic standards in basic research
and education.
Among the key lessons from the visit is the importance to move and remove disciplinary barriers in research and education. In Stanford, embedded in the
general climate of Silicon Valley, this happens in the context of promoting entrepreneurial and creative thinking, such as searching for disruptive
technologies. The overwhelming majority of Stanford alumni and faculty never start companies. However, the prevailing campus atmosphere strives not
only to solving problems but more towards recognizing and defining problems in all walks of life, from basic research to professional careers and
corporate careers. Promoting this kind of mindset is a golden opportunity also for Aalto.
Aalto Ventures Program is an impressive collection of talent and motivated people from the Aalto community. It has a strong bottom-up undercurrent, and it
is exhilarating to see the strong involvement of students and young researchers. I would be very happy to find a role in AVP, for example through
bringing in doctoral students and post-docs from physics and related areas. A specific example is the BioDesign programme in biomedical engineering,
visited by Paavo Kinnunen and me during the Stanford visit.
The writing is on the wall at the STVP premises:
• Every problem is an opportunity.
• The bigger the problem, the bigger the opportunity.
• Entrepreneurs do much more than imaginable with much less than is imaginable.

4. Silicon Valley
Its definitely a state of mind...